When Worlds Collide
by Kokirian.Network
Summary: Relations between Wizards and Muggles are at an all-time low following the attack on the Quidditch world cup. This should be of great concern to a few undercover Muggle students at Hogwarts. However, flying, magic, the current Triwizard cup, and who's dating who seem much more important. But how long can this secret last, when a few purebloods are starting to catch on.
1. Stay Under The Radar

**Disclaimer: This story takes place and is inspired by J.K Rowling's work. A few concepts and characters are my own.**

Day one of classes

The M.P.A classroom's drapes flew open. Golden rays illuminated the ancient room. The closet door came next; a teapot flew from within and set itself under an odd brewing machine. With its cogs peaking out, like holes from an old pair of genes, the machine steamed while an assortment of fruits and spices took turns diving into the teapot. Outside, chubby sparrows sat on curled trees; chirping excitedly as they watched uniformed students travel across various long winding paths towards the massive castle known as Hogwarts. Soon, every seat of M.P.A 101 became filled with an energetic teen. The quiet room was transformed into a bustling room full of colors and din chatter.

"Students! Settle, settle- wow-", the old bearded professor dodged a flying paper plane, "my, careful with those", he grunted, "You know, those can easily poke someone's eye out", he said sternly, although his voice was much too gentle to sound threatening.

The majority of the distracted students had formed a line to the teakettle and had not taken notice of their instructor. This was impressive, for the old man was wearing a cone-like hat that gave him one extra foot of height and a blue robe embellished with golden embroidery.

The teacher grunted, he mumbled words and swished his wand. Wind rose and flew in all directions. The people near him scrambled while the rest of the kettle line blissfully continued to chat with one another.

"This smells wonderful", said one. "Can't believe the Triwizard tournament is taking place here!" said another. "The prophet alleges the World Cup attack was organized by none other than Sirius Black!"

The old man huffed. He stretched his hand, "Wingardium Leviosa!"

Tea and fruit chunks soared out of the teakettle like a broken fire hydrant and collected in the sky. Slowly each drop made its way to an empty wooden teacup, which then magically took its place at a desk. The students gasped in awe.

"Yay!" The crowd went wild. Each student rushed to pick a seat.

"They never cease to change", chuckled the bearded man. "Hurry on, no fighting, just take a seat". He used his wand, like a maestro at concert, to steer the stragglers to seats. "Alright let's gets this started! My name is professor Gregor. Yes, nice to meet you. I'm sure by the end of the term I will also know each of your names, seeing how small our class is", he swished his wand, curtains simultaneously fell, and the room became filled with darkness.

The crowd whispered.

"I understand most of you think you know what M.P.A is, but I assure you, there is so much more to this career than you can hope to understand…. And, intro happens to be my favorite part, so-", he swished once more and chalkboard screens came down while hologram projections of solar systems, magical creatures, and celestial beings littered the room.

"Wow!", "A Pegasus!", "Look at that dragon!" The energy in the room lifted with the amazed teens.

"Yes, gorges, mesmerizing… cute, but not all of these mythical creatures come without danger", with one swing of his wand, the hologram map began to zoom in on one solar system. Soon the students were gazing at the vibrant blue planet, Earth.

The world looked beautiful from afar, but as it further became magnified the beauty became replaced by fire and darkness. Few students gasped as they witnessed dark creatures with pig-like faces and red eyes swarm a village of humans at night. The hologram shifted and became the viewpoint of an unknown villager as he ran from the excruciating screeches of the beasts. The students stayed stunned in their seats, their excitement from earlier completely vanished. Without warning the villager fell. Hearts stopped as red eyes locked to the camera.

"squeee!" The red floating eyes took shape as the horrid creature ruched to the camera.

"Ahhhhh!" The students screamed along with the fallen villager as they anticipated death.

The image dissipated without warning and the lights returned to the room. Everyone tried to catch their breath as the curtains finished opening.

"Drink your fruit tee, it will help", said the teacher sounding a little too amused as he made his way to the podium's black chalkboard, "Department of Menacing Paranormal Anomalies. Better known as M.P.A. They are detectives, a career dedicated to resolving any unnatural threats targeting Muggles, such as the situation witnessed seconds ago. Unnatural threats derived from what Muggles refer to as paranormal, which means anything that cannot be explained by science, hence magic in nature. To give you a better-"

"Professor!" the girl with long silver hair had been waving her hand.

The professor turned his attention to her. He tapped his wand in the air and mumbled a few words. A long scroll materialized and unfolded before the professor. His eyes darted across the parchment, "ah! Yes. Here we are, Ms. Luna Lovegood. I normally take questions after my speech, but seeing that you already interrupted, go on ahead".

"I didn't mean to stop your wonderful speech professor", she said with a soft smile and turned to look around to her peers, "I just thought it was in everyone's best interest to know that Magic and science are not fully independent from one another, as most wizards falsely believe".

A few of the students giggled.

"Weirdo", whispered a skinny blond boy with an upturned nose.

"Silence. Students Silence", the professor looked to the ceiling with narrowed eyes, "she's not entirely wrong. There are many theories and some evidence... wait", he starts waving his hands, "we don't have time for pseudo-topics. For this class we'll keep it simple, magic and science are as different as black and white. Okay. We're on a strict schedule here, so let's continue", he returned his gaze to the board, "now, where was I…. ah yes. I was about to paint you a better picture of the type of threats the M.P.A face; recovery and or removal of dark artifacts, hostile creatures, spirits, fairies, demons, etcetera", he wrote as he spoke. "Dangers will come in endless shapes and or forms, not even we wizards have yet discovered or fully comprehend everything about the mysteries of our world. In summary, M.P.A deals with endless Muggle threats that may or may not have a protocol", He turned his attention to the class, "I don't intend to scare you. It will be a challenging yet very rewarding career".

"Professor?" A trembling hand goes to the air, "will we actually be going to see any of these monsters… I mean during the term?" asked a pink-faced girl with blond pigtails as she covered her mouth.

"Miss-", the bearded man's eyes searched through his levitating roster, "Miss Hannah Abbott. We'll talk about field trips in a bit. First I want to talk to you about a different matter". He continued writing. "Now, the M.P.A department doesn't just protect Muggles. For the majority of cases, it encompasses working with Muggles to resolve a problem", he brought his hands together, "working from the sidelines or casting Obliviate isn't the most productive solution. Now, can anyone tell me how this would be a problem?"

Another trembling hand went up.

The bearded man searched through his roster, "ah, yes, Mr. Neville Longbottom, go on child, speak your mind."

"Well, The secret sir…Um, Muggles could, potentially, discover Magic… could they not?" Neville turned a couple of shades red when a few classmates laughed.

"Duh", said a snotty blond boy.

"Settle students, settle. Yes, Mr. Longbottom, you are most certainly correct. Good job", he waved his hands, "1 points for Gryffindor!"

The classmates stopped laughing.

"Neville", called a boy with shaggy hair and purple colored eyes. Slightly laughing he chanted, "Gryffindor, Gryffindor".

"Very intuitive", Luna smiled at the round-faced boy.

Neville smiled back but his red shade would not diminish.

Gregor tapped the board, "To protect the secret, detectives are trained in general Muggle studies so that they can successfully integrate themselves, undercover, in Muggle settings", he gave a wide smile full of crooked teeth, "Spy work, sounds fun, aye. Are you all following, any questions?"

Everyone's hands fly in the air.

"Basically, we're Ghostbusters. Right?" asked the boy with shaggy hair and purple colored eyes.

"Busters? Huh? What?", he laughed, "ghosts are not the MPA's focus, but if you want to look at it that way, sure", he said between laughs, "and raise your hand next time".

"How many courses do we need to become M.P.A detectives?" asked a girl with slick black hair and ridiculously large glasses.

"Will we get to work with Nargles?" Asked Luna in her passive voice, "they're a mystery too".

"Raise your hands", he pointed at the girls.

Hands dangle in the air, "are MPAs like cops, can they arrest?", "How is this any different than 'Care For Magical Creatures'?" "I want to know more about the Triwizard tournament", "what about the Yule Ball!" The random questions began to overtake the room.

The professor graved the side of his head and exhaled, "should have waited for questions to the end".

A boy with dark shoulder-length hair stood up, "I heard students could intern in the Ministry's M.P.A department, is that true!" His voice was deep for his age.

Everyone settled and waited for the professor. All except for the snotty blond boy, "we Malfoys have a history of early drafting into the ministry of magic", he said proudly, "of course for more serious professions".

Professor Gregor walked to the boy. He looked down at the hooded emerald eyes. "You are right indeed young man", his eyes shifted to the roster, "Mr. Zephir Solastell, one may aid the department as a student…" He turned to the class and raised his voice, "The ministry accepts applicants from year seven". He lowered his spectacles and smiled, "now, if you start showing promise beyond your years, you might, just might, be asked to become a full-fleshed M.P.A detective… no matter the age. This would most certainly grant you access to exclusive and dangerous missions", he said menacingly.

"Wow", Zephir sat back down.

"Wow indeed. Wait, now there you have me going again. My schedule is all jumbled up", Gregor snapped his fingers and ran to the board, "we need to stick to the program. All your questions will be answered, maybe not all today but inevitably they will", he rubbed his hands together. "Speed mode! Your job here, as M.P.A 101 students, is to learn and see if this line of work fancies you. If so, you can continue to a higher course once you achieve your OWLs. During this course we complete projects based on field trips, missions if you will, to paranormal hot spots", he slightly turned to the students who showed a range of reactions, "don't worry, these locations are harmless and age-appropriate. Now, to close today's lecture, as I will at the end of every class, I leave you with a final lecture. A life lesson. Heed my words, magic is a gift. Honor it. But know that", he began writing in big, "magic doesn't solve all of life's problems", Gregor paused, allowing the students to take a moment with their thoughts. He then tapped the air with wand and the roster reappeared, "Miss Neytiri Gaunt".

The girl with the ridiculously large glasses stood in attention like a soldier, "Yes sir!"

Gregor tapped the board behind him, "Child, tell me your opinion".

Neytiri gulped, "My opinion sir?"

"What do you think this means", he tapped the board again.

"Well… if magic could solve all problems", her voice took on sudden confidence, "we wouldn't have animal cruelty, poverty… deforestation."

"Interesting. Any other opinions?"

A girl with a jet-black curly bob raised her hand, "Magic would not stop a divorce or rekindle a broken friendship", she elongated her words with her French accent.

A tall stereotype athlete raised his hand, "Magic would not make our life any easier than a Muggle's life", he said with head raised high.

"Yes, yes, these are all interesting opinions" he brought his hands together, "I'm so proud",

"Professor", Zephir said then, as if he had just recalled, raised his hand, "I agree that magic doesn't make life any easier, but I bet if you asked a person… Muggle I mean, they would still prefer to have magic", he ended his sentence with doubt.

"I much agree with that Mr. Solastelle", he swished his wand and the cup in front of Draco steamed chaotically under its startled owner, "pay attention, Mr. Malfoy. Now, why don't you enlighten us with your opinion. Your family is one of our eldest bloodlines, one of the Sacred Twenty Eight. Surely you must have interesting insight".

Draco set aside his steaming cup and re-postured his stance, "easy, the Muggles should never know about our existence, or they would turn green with envy". Draco and the tall brittle boy close to him celebrate his comment.

"Hey! My grandmother's a Muggle!" shouted Hannah. A few students began expressing similar remarks.

"Settle students, settle! Now, that's not exactly our topic… but I suppose it relates to our class-" The professor is cut by a determined raspy voice.

"Why would anyone care!" yelled the boy with shaggy hair and purple colored eyes, "I mean… Magic is a secret to the world, and, it gets along just fine without it. So… how do we know anyone cares…I don't know", he ruffled his hair with one hand.

"Well-", Gregor is interrupted by the boy again.

"I mean, what makes a person enviable, valuable, or not?…." He lowered his head as he started turning shades of red.

Gregor crossed his arms and tilted his head while the class giggled.

"Have you never heard of Salem's witch burnings?" Neytiri said with head raised high, "It's common history even amongst the Muggles".

"Yeah, I know that", his purple eyes hovered around the room as he bit his bottom lip.

"Mr. Kai Mc... Mc. Strength, Nice", said Gregor as he looked at his quill and the class giggled, "Since we have entered this topic, why don't we refresh ourselves with a bit of history. I was hoping to end intro early, but I suppose this topic is quite important to our class. Protecting the secret of magic", the professor flicked his wand and yet again curtains closed and a projection of a village amidst the classroom materialized. "Long ago, in the late 1600's", he said in a deep voice as the projection played his story, "three young enchantresses found themselves in a terrible predicament. They had grown so close to their Muggle friends that in a burst of a sudden need to show their loyalty and trust, the thee girls revealed to their friends the existence of magic", the professor stopped and allowed the scene to unfold.

A group of teenage girls, dressed in modest long dresses and coif hats, gathered by a lonely river in a thick forest. They were encircling three girls that were using their wands like batons to summon and conduct an orchestra of butterflies. Everyone was smiling, laughing, and even dancing as the rays of different colored butterflies made gushes of wind as they flew in all directions.

"But the happy moment would not last". The professor's deep voice scared a few entranced students. The scene changed to reveal what looked like an argument by a deserted old water-well. "With passing time, the enchantresses found their Muggle friends craved more and more. It seemed their magic no longer satisfied their friends. It had all been a mistake". He flicked his wand.

The scene changed and now the Muggle girls, with torches at hand, were gathered alone by the well at night. "It's not fair. It's not right", shouted the tiny girl projections.

"It's not known what ran through these Muggle minds, what they planned, or what they hoped to achieve, all that's known is that losing magic had driven them mad", Gregor's voice had taken a saddened tone. He flicked his wand.

The scene switched and the Muggle girls, each with parents by their side, stood in front of what looked like a town council meeting. The parents shouted while the girls quivered like damsels in distress.

"The girls claimed to be bewitched by servants of the devil, witches!" Gregor raised his arms dramatically and his large shadow engulfed the captivated students, "The townsmen gasped as the girls came in and out of these claimed possessions! They screeched and contorted their bodies in ways that sent townies running out of court".

The students gasped along with the townsmen.

The scene changed, the town was in chaos. Door to door large men broke in and took young girls and women from their distraught families, "The young Muggle girls had not predicted that their stories of the Devil and Magic would drive the rest of the town mad. If three witches existed, why not more? Trial upon trial, new claim upon claim", the scene morphs to show rows of women standing before a court. The villagers condemning them while the women pleaded on their knees. Suddenly, the whole scene becomes engulfed in fire and distant screams lingered in the background until the fire projection disappeared.

Curtains open and the students recalled to breath.

"Many innocent died", Gregor's voice was soft now, almost sympathetic, "do you see now students, why the knowledge of magic must never be known to Muggles".

The class stayed quiet. Everyone undoubtedly lost in their mind.

Draco crossed his hands and reclined on his wooden seat "Stupid Muggles", his voice slightly breaking.

"Is that what you think Mr. Malfoy?" Gregor descended from the small podium, "do you think this whole ordeal is to be blamed on the Muggles alone?"

Malfoy crumbled his mouth to one side, "well yeah".

"Professor", Neytiri swung her hand in the air, "I have to agree with Draco".

"Really?" The professor looked surprised, "and why is that?"

"Well, the enchantresses revealed our secret because they cared for these… Muggles. Yes careless, but out of good intentions. On the other hand, the Muggles revealed the secret to the townies out of anger, or envy, or whatever the case, out of some evil intent", she said sternly as her nails dug the surface off the wooden table.

"My grandmother's not like that", Hannah said with voice breaking.

"Are we concluding that Muggles cannot handle the truth of magic?" Kai blurred from his seat.

A girl with curly reddish-blond hair jumped in before the professor could answer, "Muggles are very emotional beings. They can't help themselves".

"And you know that for a fact Marietta?" Said the girl with jet-black bob next to Marietta.

"O, and you know it all Isa", Marietta turned menacingly to Isa.

"Students-", Gregor is cut again.

"Muggles can't comprehend magic so they fear it. What they fear they need to destroy", Neytiri said sternly.

Zephir stood from his seat, "So Muggles are primitives that cant understand magic? That's a little arrogant don't you think?"

"Didn't you learn anything from Salem's witch burnings?!" Neytiri barked back.

"That was ages ago. Times were different!" Zephir.

Neytiri and Draco stood, but before either could respond, the class erupted in an argument.

"Settle, student settle", Gregor waved his hand hopelessly, "I love a good stimulating debate but this is getting out of control. Hey!" he catches the sight of an ice-frozen student, "far enough, Accio speakerphone", from his desk comes flying a wooden speakerphone, "SIT YOUR BUTS DOWN STUDENT, NOW!" his words materialize in chalkboard writing across the room. This seems to do the trick as all the students, except the frozen one, take a seat. Gregor waved his wand in a complicated manner that led to streams of air unfreezing the youth. "Now as proud as I am of you, I'm going to lecture you!" his words floated over the scolded students; chalk dust softly raining over their heads, "if you have something constructive to say, you raise your hand. Do you understand!"

The teens shook their head yes.

"I didn't hear you"

"YES SIR/professor!" shouted the student in one variation or the other.

"Good. Today everyone did a great job of participating, even if they didn't get a chance to speak, they put in their opinions somehow", he put the speakerphone down, "all except one. Never voiced an opinion or at least raised their hand. Didn't even join in on the big rumble just now. Ms. Serena Hart", he turned to the corner of the room just by the window. The rest of the class followed his Gaze.

There, hidden behind a large yellow bag, a girl with large vibrant clips over her sandy brown hair suddenly forgot how to speak "Blab- tha- ne"

The class burst out in laughter.

"Cling! Cling!" the old bell echoed across the halls. The class rapidly forgot the girl's existence as they prepared to leave.

"See you next time student's, please don't be late. Pay attention next time Miss Hart".

The girl felt herself melt in the chair. "So much for not dragging attention to yourself", she whispered.

"Don't give yourself such a hard time"

"Ahhh", Serena had not noticed the professor approach her. She quickly sat up, "yes professor sir!"

"I too was young once you know…. Although that was centuries ago".

The girl blinked, "centuries?…" She whispered.

"But I would prefer a shy student, who can blossom out of their shell, opposed to a student with no interest in magic".

"NO! Professor I love magic…. The topic was really interesting!"

"Really, then why didn't you speak up? Cat got your tong?"

"No…. um", she looked around, "um, professor…. If humans can't handle the knowledge of magicians… us, cus of jealousy, right? Then why can't WE magicians simply help them become magicians?…"

The professor blinked, "I see why you didn't speak up. That's a dumb question".

The girl melted in her chair again.

The professor laughed, "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. No question is dumb. No, you know… such rumors do littler the staff kitchen at times. A bit of a fable, taboo topic if you will…

"Taboo?"

"Well, besides being extremely complicated, most likely impossible, it would be immoral. Similar to bringing someone back from the dead!" He swayed his hands as if telling a scary story, "Not to mention, the Muggle would most likely perish… now that I think about it, that would be a crime too".

"Crime!" She bit the bottom of her lip, "So… it's never been done before?"

"NO! I mean… not to my knowledge. You see, besides being extremely complicated and immoral, it would be inconvenient... You see, a spell always takes a bit from a wizard when cast. So the greater the spell, the greater the payment required. Plus, being able to cast magic is not the only property that makes up a wizard…. O but that sort of Biology is too complicated to explain…ah! I know", he pointed to the sky, "think of it this way. It would be like donating your legs to a fish so that it may walk on land? We both know a fish would require more to succeed on land. He would suffocate! Not to mention, you, the magician, would lose your ability to walk!" He said dramatically.

"Sooo… The magician is the one losing something while the Muggle is accepting something they cant handle…"

"Exactly"

"But what if the Muggle also gave something of equal value in return… wouldn't that even the odds -"

"GIRL! There I go running my mouth again. You're going to be late for your next class!" He clapped as the girl scrambled in her seat.

"Ahhhh!" she gathered all her supplies with one quick arm-grab and ran out of the nearly empty class.

**Hey guys! The following chapter will hopefully be shorter and with less exposition. It will definitely be through the perspective of one protagonist- not first person. And I will be switching between Harry Potter characters- not Harry- and OCs. Please comment. I would love to hear your opinions! Thank you sooooo much for reading!**


	2. The Little Muggle

**Disclaimer: This story takes place and is inspired by J.K Rowling's work. A few concepts and characters are my own.**

Serena walked alone to her next class. Thankfully, she was told, her next class was not hard to find, all she had to do was follow along the arched corridor attached to the outside of the castle. She liked this route better than some of the inside dark gothic corridors. One could see the vast blue sky littered with winged creatures; The Gravel footpaths that weaved out like rivers into fields of different gardens; To top it off, the sloping hill was angled in a way that even the forbidden forest and the Great Lake could be admired. However, beautiful as it all was, she couldn't fully take it in. At the moment her mind was ells were, lost thinking about her conversation with Gregor. Crime, Muggles,… secrets. It all bounced in her head like a furious tennis match. That's when she almost bumped into someone.

"Excuse me", said an enormous man with a heavy western accent. She had seen this man before, during the Welcoming Feast. But his stature was still impressive. Had to be twice the height and five times the width of a normal man. Hagrid was his name, the professor of 'care and magical Creatures'.

As her gaze followed the man stepping into a garden, the girl saw a group of teens performing, no, practicing what looked like ballet. They all had small tutus over their uniform and had a casual form of practicing as they all chattered and laughed amidst dance.

The girl smiled. Hogwarts was just too beautiful to ignore. Her earlier thoughts shoved to the back of her mind. Would magic be involved? She wondered as she sat to watch the performance with a group of students.

"Excuse me" a girl with unnaturally frizzy hair passed her a basket of odd-looking plums.

"Huh?" She looked at the basket then to the girl.

The frizzy-haired girl was too preoccupied arguing with her two friends to notice.

Tap on the shoulder. "Pass the dirigible plums please", Serena turned to find a group of young kids. They didn't look to be watching the performance as much as they were watching the girl with the frizzy hair and her friends.

"I think I can see his scar", whispered one.

"I can't wait to tell mom. Me hanging out with The Harry Potter. So cool", squealed another.

"Coming through!" Said a group of boys carrying crate boxes. They all looked tired yet exited as they struggled to keep whatever crazed thing was inside. The box had danger stickers covering the entire surface.

The sitting group protested as they made room for the teens.

"Blimey! What's in there!" pointed in disbelief the redhead friend of the frizzy-haired girl.

"Is this another one of your pranks", the frizzy-haired girl crossed her arms.

"And there you have it. Instead of eating plums you should be eating prunes", barked a tall redhead.

"Yeah", responded- to the surprise of Serena- his redhead twin, "relax a little. Ain't nothing wrong with a few laughs on a hectic day".

"Yeah!" The kids eating the plums shouted in unison.

"Cling! Cling!" rang the ancient bells and echoed across the school.

Serena's smile vanished, "O no! I'm going to be late". She left running and chuckling. It was hard to feel any form of worry. Not when everything was much to exiting.

Not far from her destination, "Bang". Serena watches her books fly to the sky. How unfair was gravity, for she fell flat on the floor and scraped her knees while the books who had no feelings, she was certain, gently fell in the hands of a boy. "Ouch…" the pain finally kicked in.

"Dang. So sorry about that", the boy plants the books in the arms of his nerdy-looking friend, "here let me help" he stretched his hand to the girl.

"I'm fine", she said a little annoyed as she got to her feet and finally faced her mugger, "can I have my boo, boo-" she forgot English again. "_My prince!" _She screamed in her head.

"Is she alright?" The boys asked one another.

"_I finally found you…after all this time…_", she squeezed the tiny necklace hiding under her shirt. Her hand turned red but she could not feel pain, her mind was to busy drifting far away...

Months ago, ages in the eyes of Serena, in what felt like another life, on another boring night…

In a colorful room, adorned with Sabrina the teenage posters and glow in the dark stars, Serena looked at her reflection. The silky grey dress shined as it caught the light. She frowned.

"Jessie!" Yelled a stifled woman's voice from a distance, "Darling we're running late!"

Serena huffs in resignation, "coming!" She turned to the vicinity of the window, "hold the fort Plato", she said sweetly to a stuffed dog sitting next to the telescope.

The girl stomped all the way downstairs and on to the living room where she bumped into her father who was walking by.

"Honey!" His attention between his daughter and a rebellious tie, "you look adorable", he continued on his way.

"No, I don't. I look like I'm going to a funeral. O wait, the theme is death" she finished the last part when her father was too far to hear.

"What was that?" a woman dressed in a black cocktail dress appeared from the kitchen, "Darling, that dress looks great on you. Darn", the earing she had been fiddling with almost fell.

Serena crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes.

"O honey, I promise we'll leave the party as soon as I speak with detective Neil and the coroner"

"Mom, as much as I would love to spend hours watching you talk about missing people and money, I think I'd much rather stay home and eat cold leftovers with Guardian", she said sarcastically, then slightly regretted her tone when she saw the hurt in her mother's face.

"Are you sure?" Her father reappeared, now wearing his full penguin suit, "some of the cases tend to be really interesting", his suit instantly looked worn-out next to his wife, "you could hang out with me and the snack table. You know how much money these folks spend in food?" her father said in a silly voice, "it's bananas!"

Serena tried not to get upset, even if she agreed with her father- some missing-person and murder cases were incredibly interesting- she hated when her father spoke to her like a child. "I'm almost 14, people my age stay home alone all the time", she tried to sound as mature as she could muster.

"If it was morning, I wouldn't have a problem. But darling, we're spending two days out of town…", she finally turned from her hand mirror to look at her daughter, "The baby sitter isn't available until tomorrow night".

"Mom! I'm not a baby! I can take care of myself".

"Jessie! Don't raise your voice. And how could you take care of yourself when you can't even make your bed, let alone cook a simple dish".

Jessie huffed, " That's cus I never had to. But I can learn like this", she snapped her fingers.

"Honey", she's old enough to spend one night alone. Plus, our neighbors could spare some warm breakfast" he shined a cheesy smile at his not so happy wife, "AND, Guardian will keep her company"

"Ruff, Ruff!" The golden retriever sitting at the front of the door barked as he heard his name.

"Thanks, dad" Jessie instantly forgave her father for talking to her with a baby voice.

"No. No. It's out of the question", Jessie's mother said as her husband helped her put on her coat, "thank you", she said sharply.

"PLEASE!" Jessie falls to her knees in front of her mother and chants, "please, please, please".

"Jessie! Your dress", she tried in vain to pull her daughter up.

Guardian starts barking along with every 'please'.

The elegant woman shook her head, "alright, alright. Stand up!"

"Really!"

Her mother huffed, "but only if you obey my every rule- Jessie, pay attention".

Jessie stopped hopping, "yes Sr. Boss, Sr." she brought her hand to her head in salute.

"Under no circumstances do you open the door to anyone. I absolutely do not want you speaking with any stranger. AND, under no circumstances do you step one foot outside this house. Do I make myself clear?" She said sternly.

"Yes mom", she couldn't wipe the smile from her face. Which seemed to not amuse her worried mother.

Her father hugged her "don't forget to call us if you need anything. We'll drive home immediately".

"Yes dad"

"If you get hungry. Don't go near the stove, you can microwave the pasta. It's on the bottom shelve… are you listening, Jessie?"

The young girl was busy removing her complicated hair bun, "yes mom. I'll feed and walk Guardian", her wavy hair falls all over her face.

Her mother exhales, "Jessie! I'm being serious. Don't go out of this house".

"I know mom. I won't step outside", she allowed her mother to give her a tight hug. "You don't have to worry about me. I'm not messing up my chance to PROVE to you, that I can take care of myself", she said with a smile looking up at her mother.

As they finally left, her mother threw her kisses while her father gave her thumbs up. Serena, currently Jessie, stood motionless at the front door. She heard the sound of the front door locking; Next, the front gate screeching close, and finally, a car driving off. "Finally alone….Freedom! Woohoo!" She jumped and ran across the hall" come on Guardian! Party time!"

"Ruff! Ruff!" Guardian chased after her.

10 minutes later. Jessie sat in the living room sofa, eating cold pasta, and watching re-run episodes of a soap opera, "lame! How does Mom watch this? All the protagonist are so stupid", she said with mouth full and fetching the TV remote, "much better", she smiled at the image of the Power Rangers undergoing morphing transformations, "yeah!" She clapped as the green ranger began to play his flute and summon his Megazord robot.

"BANG!" an explosion followed by shockwaves caused the house to rock.

"Earthquake!" she launched the noodles into the air and ran under a coffee table, "common boy!" she tried to get the large dog to join her, but Guardian was too busy barking at the front door. "Boy! You're gonna get hurt- NO!" she yells in vein as the golden retriever pushed the broken door open and ran outside. "Come back. Mom!" She stretched her arm and tried to reach for the phone. She could feel her fingertips gracing the rigid plastic when a sudden thought stopped her, "_I'm not a child. What would a ranger do?... Gotta save Guardian on my own….But… mom…". _

_"__Don't go outside"_, her mother's words echo in her head.

"Ugg", she flustered her messy hair, "I'm not a baby!" She gulped and tried to balance herself up.

After closing the front gates, it wasn't too soon that the earthquake stopped. But she hadn't noticed, not when she was star struck by the odd streaks in the sky. They looked like florescent claw marks carving the night, starting from the clouds and ending at the nearby nature preserve.

"Ruff!" Guardian was running towards the wetlands.

"Guardian!" She ran after the dog.

The streaks led the girl into the marsh. Jessie had visited the place often with her father when walking Guardian. The secluded area was only lit by moonlight so a flashlight was required, or, like her mother often said, they faced the possibility of falling into sinking mud or being surprised by snakes. Today, 'light' wouldn't be a problem; the place was covered in small patches of fire. The girl stopped in mid-trail. The image would just not process. The fire was not behaving right. It wasn't spreading and they were primarily extruding purple lights onto a crash sight. The tip of what looked like a sinking motorcycle was peaking out and Guardian was barking at a body almost submerged in water.

"Ahhhh!" Jessie turned the other way and was about to run when Guardian darted and caught her by her sweater, "boy! Let go. We need to get the cops. O my god there's a body. I don't care how many I've seen on TV, this is a crime scene!"

Guardian let go and ran back to the body, "Ruff!" he began pulling at wet garments.

"Boy! No-", she noticed one leg move", …. It's alive? We need to get help!", she turned to leave.

"Ruff!"

"…. Fine", she hesitantly and slowly approached the person.

Under the shallow water, the girl could see the silhouette of a teenage boy with light hair. She gasped and covered her mouth. He had to be only a few years older than her. She shook her head and did as Guardian was doing; struggle to pull the boy out of water.

"There", she dropped the boy then threw herself next to him, "I need to work out…", she turned to the boy, "What is he wearing?" the boy was covered in mud but it was obvious that his soaked garments were foreign. His black robes had intricate embroidery, almost like ancient letters or mathematic equations. "Wait! Is he breathing?!" How long had he been underwater? She wondered, "O my God, Guardian what do I do? I should have paid more attention to Baywatch", she graved her hair in frustration, "shit. Okay. Okay. Calm down…. Please don't sue me", she was about to give him CPR when-

"Vec?!" A male voice from a distance.

"Huh? Guardian, did you hear that?"

"Vec", several more voices followed by lights.

"Ahh….", she took off running and jumped behind a bush; far from the scene yet still close enough to observe.

Guardian followed

"Here!", a boy with glasses emerged from trees nearby, "I see his bike!".

Two more boys appeared and they began frantically searching the crash site.

"What am I doing…" Jessie told Guardian as she stood up.

"We need more light". One of the boys raised his arm and pointed something- too far for Jessie to see- into the sky "Lumos!"A flash of light illuminated the scene.

Jessie froze in a crouching position.

"Cain!", the boy with the glasses crossed his arms, "a Muggle might see us".

"Hey!", yelled the shortest of the group, "I found him!".

The three boys surround the unconscious teen.

"Vec!", the boy with the glasses checked him.

"We messed up bad", said the one referred to as Cain, "Rahdrick is going to kill us".

"Calm down idiot", barked the shortest, "Will, cast the Anapneo charm".

The boy with the glasses stood up, "I've never done that spell!" What if he has the wrong reaction-".

"Hey! Why do you spend so much time with your nose up those books if you're not going to put anything into use? Hurry up and cast! Unless you want to be the one to tell Rahdrick his nephew died!"

If Will responded, Jessie was too far to hear. The boy chanted words and sparks erupted.

Vec began coughing.

"Alive…" Jessie muttered.

"You alright man?" Will sat next to Vec and the rest followed.

"Man up", said the short one, "we need to leave before any undesirables catch us".

"Or worse, the Mi-Ministry", Cain's voice shuddered.

"Start cleaning", barked the short one, "we must return to Hogwarts before anyone realizes we're missing".

"How's my ride?", said Vec between coughs.

Jessie heard no response.

"Hey!", the boys said as Vec stumbled to his feet.

"I'll take care of it", he said weakly.

The boys separated. Two worked on the purple flames. They chanted words and, oddly, waved sticks. Green liquid substance materialized and engulfed the flames. Jessie would later realize that no smoke had ever emerged.

Vec, with the help of Will, walked to the submerged motorcycle and brought a flute to his mouth. The song he played was hard to recall, but the girl just knew it was something pleasant. The motorcycle emerged from the water and began circling. It's rotations speeding and shrinking in size until the large object had transformed into what Jessie believed a necklace. She couldn't be sure of anything do to her distance.

No longer in flames, the crash site was swallowed by darkness. Not even the large streaks in the sky were present anymore. She could hear the boys run from the site, and with that, any trace of the whole event had vanished.

Jesse didn't know how many hours she spent there. Frozen. Head pulsing. One question replaying. Magic is real?

When she could finally move, she inspected the crash site. Nothing. Maybe it had all been a dream. No sign, that is until she found the tiny necklace of a motorcycle. She Smiled. It felt like she had just left her body and was floating high above. It was then and there that she made a promise. She would not rest until she joined these wizards in the place they called Hogwarts.

"Helloo!"

Serena blinked.

"Vec I think you might have hit her pretty hard", Will said.

"Should we take her to the infirmary?" Vec looked to Will. He was still standing next to Serena.

"Don't be stupid", the shortest of the friends appeared. He hadn't been there before Serena got lost in her daydream, "we don't have time for this", he leaned in to be face to face with the girl, "tell them you're okay, little girl".

"What?!" Serena narrowed her eyes and crumbled her mouth to one side. Out of all the four boys, this one had been her least favorite to recall.

"Boys?!" everyone turned to a pretty female. She had auburn hair and looked quite mature, perhaps a college girl.

"Odette", Vec smiled and went to the girl. He kissed her on the mouth.

Serena's jaw dropped. Not her prince!

Will covered his eyes while the short friend crossed his arms.

Vec pulled back and narrowed his eyes, " I thought you had left on your, secret, mission?" he smiled.

Serena shook her head. This couldn't be happening. This lady even had a princess name!

Odette smiled back. Jessie couldn't deny she was beautiful, "Some delays got on the way. They shouldn't take long", she brought her hands to her hips and mimicked Vec's face, "I thought you boys were also out on a mission-"

"ACTUALLY, we're running late", interrupted the short friend.

Odette blinked, finally noticing Serena, "and who might this be?" she walked to the younger girl and looked down, "Don't tell me Dash is patronizing you?"

"I'm not", Dash turned away, "Just another dramatic freshman ", he said at the same time that Vec said...

"I ran her over", he shined his teeth, "sorry about that again".

"Are you alright", Odette placed her hand on Serena's head.

The mute girl blinked. Everything finally processing. The wizard boy she hoped to marry- like any legitimate protagonist at the end of a story- was being taken from her.

"Would you like me to take you to the infirmary?" Odette looked a little worried now.

"No", Serena pushed Odette's hand away. "I've got class".

Odette blinked. She must have been confused because her hand remained in the air.

The young girl didn't look at the boys. She took off running, yelling, "I'm late to class", which was true, but not quite her reasons for running off.

How unfair. Magic was amazing, but she had abandoned everything and everyone to find a perfect life, and a life without Vec and the boys was not a perfect one. Thus, she would have to fight a little longer for her happiness. "Operation get Vec back", she whispered to the air as she held on tightly to Vec's necklace, "you're just going to have to watch, Ms. Swan princess Odette", she mocked the name, "along with the rest of the world my badass happily ever after".

**If you made it to the end, thank you soooooooo much! So, this chapter is slightly- maybe extremely- childish, but it will be getting darker as the story progresses. Hope you enjoyed! **


	3. Amy, The Astronomy Sargent

**Disclaimer: This story takes place and is inspired by J.K Rowling's work. A few concepts and characters are my own.**

The vast blue sky was clear and calm. The yellowing paths to Hogwarts were now free of the bustling traffic from earlier this morning. This day would seem like a calm normal morning; but only if you were watching from afar.

"AHHHHH!" "HELP!", "MY HAIR!", creams came from every corner of the west end of the castle.

"Pixies!" wobbled frantically Hagrid as a small, fairie-like, electric blue creature sat on his head and pulled his hair; just like a tiny cowboy holding on to a horse's reins.

"Ahhhh!" Serena jumped just in time to dodge the giant man, "what is going on here!" she continued to run while trying to dodge hurtling objects. She wasn't really afraid. Moments ago, when everything happened, things seemed much scarier. But after watching the Pixies tug hairs, steal bags, drop drinks on heads, and other childish pranks, she realized they meant no real danger, just havoc.

"Students!" The speakerphone came to life with a young female's voice, "please move in an orderly fashion and take refuge in your prior classrooms. The school will take care of these-", small pause, "PESTS!" Water droplets shot out of the speakerphone.

The chaotic foot traffic finally began to move with a little more direction.

Serena didn't know the school layout yet so returning to her previous class was not an easy task. But at last, "there!" She could see her classroom, then- "Ahhh!" the brunet ran under a table to dodge a stampede of girls sporting clown makeup, "watch it", she chuckled.

From her hiding spot, she could see that not everyone was in a hurry to escape the madness. Some carefree students had begun to play with the Pixies. Chasing one another with water cups and food.

Serena laughed. Food-fights were the kind of thing you witnessed on TV, not experienced in real life.

"Father stop!"

Serena sees two pairs of legs stop right in front of her hiding table.

"Draco! This isn't the time or place to have this conversation".

"Then when? You had three weeks to tell me".

Serena bit her lip, _"This is awkward",_ she thought.

The man taps his foot, "Rahdrick Gaunt", he finally said after a few seconds. "This is the man who will give you answers".

Serena blinked, she'd heard that name before, "_Vec's uncle!_" She tried to peek from under the table.

"Rahdrick?" The silver-haired boy raised an eyebrow. It was Draco Malfoy, the snotty boy from class this morning.

"I've made arrangements with him to guide you through the plan. We must handle everything with caution", the man with long silver hair looked to his surroundings. Everything around was still in chaos.

"But father, you haven't told me what these", he slightly jumped at the sight of students running by. He leaned in, "you haven't told me what these plans are", he whispered.

The man graved the boy's arms. Serena could tell this action scared Draco. "You've done enough shaming our name. Ugg", he let go, "the irony. If Harry were the one tasked with this mission, I have no doubt he'd succeed", he looked to the distance, slightly shaking his head.

Malfoy had turned shades of red. But he said nothing.

Serena had no idea what was happening. All she knew was how uncomforted she felt and hoped this conversation would end soon.

Her prayers were answered. The man tapped the boy's shoulder and left with a dry goodbye.

Draco exhaled, and- to the horror of Serena- dropped to the ground.

Their eyes met. Serena was stunned. She could see Draco's eyes turn from confused to enraged.

"YOU!"

"Ahhhhh!", Serena felt a bucket of adrenaline dropped in her stomach. She jumped out of the hiding spot and ran towards her class.

"Stop!"

"No!" she could see her classroom's door.

The door slightly opens, "hurry up dummies!" called a man.

The girl slides through wet floor and into the classroom's floor "I-I made it", she said trying to catch her breath.

"Congrats. Want a medal or what", barked the man guarding the door.

"Medal?"

But before she could stand up, Draco slides in and falls right on top of her.

"I've got you!" Draco shines a devilish smile.

"Would you look at that", barked the man, "we got to funny love birds".

The people already in class start laughing and whistling.

"QUIET!" Yelled the man. He turned to the floor, "Take a seat!"

Both Serena and Draco rush to find a seat.

Serena tried to find a seat far from Draco. The boy wouldn't be able to follow anyways. The class was nearly full. With everyone looking as if they had just stepped off a roller coaster. Some happy, others no so happy, but all dismantled in appearance.

The man tapped the floor with his foot and waved his wand. A long scroll materialized, "what's your name, Boy?"

"Malfoy. Draco Malfoy", his eyes shifted to Serena.

"Iccc", she looked away.

"Yes. Right. What about the other one", the man looked to Serena.

"Se-Serena!" Her voice came out raspy and goofy.

The class laughed.

"Silence", barked the professor. Serena wondered why this man had taken Gregors place. He looked similar to the M.P.A professor, long beard and eccentric clothes, but his temper seemed quite the opposite

"Yes, the last students. Finally". A brute swish of his wand and the scroll vanished, "Class started even before the Pixie attack!"

"Sorry!" She could feel her face flush, "I just transferred from America" she gave a sheepish smile.

One brow arched "Ilvermorny?"

"Yes?…."

"Western, I see….", he narrowed his eyes, piercing the girl like a hunter with prey. "Well now that EVERONE is here, we can start class. Colloportus", he muttered and waved his wand towards the front door.

"Click"

"Professor?" A few shy hands dangle in the air.

"Leave questions for later. Now, as I was SAYING, do to the pixie attack, new arrangements were made. I've brought the next class's lecture to you. You're welcome", he said sarcastically.

"But professor!" A petit redhead with a freckled complexion frantically waved her hand in the air, "I'm not from this group's year. I landed here by accident-"

"QUIET!" The man interrupts, "as I said, schedules are all messed up thanks to the pixies. So quiet! Class has started", he exhaled, "you!" he pointed with his wand at the surprised Serena, "pass out those bags", he pointed to the front desk.

Serena obeys. Flushed red, she goes to the front of the class to gather a basket full of bags. They looked like small versions of soldier backpacks.

"Alright Maggots", he said like a sergeant to the stunned students, "I'm going to treat you like what you are. Warriors! Soldiers! Not some weak defenseless babies like your other professors think you are".

Serena bit her bottom lip. She liked the idea of not being treated like a child, but on the other hand, she never signed up for boot camp.

"You know what kind of training goes on in Durmstrang? You wouldn't last a day!" he barked. Even Malfoy, who Serena handed a bag to, looked petrified.

Draco graved her risk before she could leave. Dang, she forgot she was trying to avoid him.

"We'll talk later", he half-whispered.

"No we won't", she pulled away and continued her job.

"Instead of preparing you to become protectors of the realm, this school is preparing you to become meat for slaughter!" the professor slammed the front desk and few squeals escaped, "well, I'm not going to let that happen. Hogwarts's name will not be smeared on the floor along with you. Do you hear me?" crickets, "I SAID, DO YOU HEAR ME!"

"Yes sir", "sir!", "yes!" A variation of answers.

"Good", he smiled, the students gasp. He goes to the chalkboard and writes, "My name is professor Be- ah", he stops, his face hidden to the class, "well", he erased the board, "name is Amy, short for Amycen", he wrote Amy on the board, "Sin-, ah… Sistrom." he writes. "Now. Before you smarty-pants start complaining, I'm Aromas cousin and substitute. She's not feeling well." He began frantically erasing the name.

"Is he talking about professor Aurora?" Serena heard a pretty Asian girl whisper to Marietta and Isa as she handed them army bags.

"I'm fifth-year. What teacher do you have next?" Marietta directed the question to Isa.

"My schedule has Aurora Sinistra", whispered back Isa with a smirk and wide eyes, "our professor might be an amazing spell caster, but not a very good speller".

All three girls giggled while the professor entered a speech about the rigorous training during his times.

Serena couldn't help laugh, but the fear of reprimand straightened her immediately, "here you are", she handed Hannah, the girl with blond pigtails, a bag. The camo looked strange next to her feminine appearance.

"Thank you", she said, then brought her hand to her mouth and whispered, "you two weren't the only ones late, there was like five people that came in seconds before you", she smiled.

"Nice, thanks", Serena smiled back. Finally a nice person in her class.

She continued to pass out bags, slightly tuning-in on Professor Sistrom's lecture. Just knowing the point was enough. The professor had it hard. Hogwarts was to easy now. And they needed to toughen up. She went on to the last two classmates.

Kai took both bags without acknowledging Serena, "Yo, Zephir", he tried to hand over the bag.

"What?" Zephir, who was furiously taking notes, took a second to accept the bag.

"Isn't Amy a girl's name?" Kai tilted his head. Serena mentally agreed with this.

"I don't know. Who cares", Zephir stopped writing, his head propped up, "Everyone's names in this school sound weird to me", he slightly chuckled.

"I hear you", Kai laughed a little too loud.

Amycen turned from the board and sent the board eraser flying straight into Kai's face.

Purple eyes blinked. His forehead covered in dust.

The class broke in laughter.

"Anyone ells, who interrupt my class, will-"

Amy is interrupted by nocks, followed by, " Who's in there?" a woman's voice.

"Well students, let's speed up the intro so we can get some real studies going", he said as the woman continued to call and wiggle the doorknob. Amy waved his wand towards the door, "Silencio".

Magically, the voice stopped, but the knob continued to jiggle in mute.

Amy turned to the confused students, "who's ready for an M.P.A field trip!" He said with huge grin and palms raised to the sky, "who's ready to see some scary hauntings!"

"YEA!" half of the class, including Serena, jumped with excitement while the rest of the class turned blue.

"Grab your bags! We're leaving this instance".

"Professor?" Serena recognized that voice, it was Neytiri, "I thought this was Astronomy…. Not M.P.A", she looked around, perhaps waiting for her peer's opinions.

The professor looked offended, "what kinda noob doesn't want to see Ghosts and Sasquatch?"

Neytiri scrambled her schedule with other papers, "I do! I was just won-"

"Your headmaster is turning everyone into a bunch of wimps! Get your arses up right now!"

The class jumped to their feet.

"Single file", Amycen lead the group to a gargoyle statue at the far back end of the room. He tapped it with his wand and the eyes of the scary creature became illuminated.

"What troubles seek the Crows" the statue spoke with a deep muffled voice.

Serena heard a few gasps then the class huddled together like penguins.

"The kind destined for realm treason", responded Amycen.

The floor slightly trembled and the students watched in awe as the Gargoyle rotated like a door and revealed a gothic spiral stairway leading underground.

"Come on", Amy pushed some students. Everyone resisted, a few grabbing on to each other. Amy growled, "We don't have time for this you bunch of toddler Imp'lets!".

Serena gulped. Amy was right, only toddlers feared the dark. "Lumos", a weak light emerged from her wand. She exhaled and proceeded to the stone steps.

"Wow", someone whispered from behind.

"How brave", whisper.

"Really, a girl is the first…", whisper.

These compliments fueled her as she descended into darkness. However, once out of view from the crowd, she couldn't stop her lower lip from trembling.

"I'm a-a warrior. I'm a warrior. Not a baby", she chanted with every uneven step taken. "Ah!", she shut her eyes as her foot almost gave way. She exhaled, brought one hand to the wall in search of balance, and continued. "No-not a baby", the light weakened along with her courage. "Like a Ran-Ranger", she could feel the air cooling and dampening.

"Huh?" her voice echoed as she awkwardly stepped on a plain floor. The quivering wand raised higher, "Lumos!" the light flickered from bright to dim like a failing flashlight. In a succession of flashes, an endless medieval tunnel was revealed. She pulled her cloak tighter. A strange breeze seemed to come from nowhere and made an odd howling sound. She froze, a thought struck like lightning, was this what Amy meant by Ghosts? Was this the paranormal field trip?" Her heart raised.

"Hey", tap on the shoulder.

"MOM!" Serena dropped to the floor and covered her head.

To be continued….

**Thank you so much for reading! **


	4. Grow Up for Amy

**Disclaimer: This story takes place and is inspired by J.K Rowling's work. A few concepts and characters are my own.**

Serena just wanted to find shelter from the pixie attack. It was never her intention to overhear a private conversation between Draco and his father. Now the boy had turned into an enemy. To make matters worse, the crazy astronomy professor, Amy, had decided to take them on a fieldtrip. Not just any trip, but a trip to the scary underground tunnels of Hogwarts.

"Lumos!" Serena's light flickered from bright to dim like a failing flashlight. In a succession of flashes, an endless medieval tunnel was revealed. Serena pulled her cloak tighter. A strange breeze seemed to come from nowhere and made an odd howling sound. She froze, a thought struck like lightning, was this what Amy meant by Ghosts? Was this the paranormal field trip?" Her heart raised.

"Hey", tap on the shoulder.

"MOM!" Serena dropped to the floor and covered her head.

"Mom?!' she heard Zephir say then laugh, "and here I thought we had found the next Harry Potter. He continued to laugh.

"Hey", Kai and a few more descended the stairs, "what's so funny?" his voice echoed throughout the tunnel.

Serena redden. She digs her nails in Zehir's arm.

"Oww!"

Floating lights scramble behind.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Just tripping. Nothing scary… or funny down here" he said fighting laughter, "just disappointed. Place isn't that impressive once you look at it".

"Yea", Kai said as he finally caught up. The boy looked a little distraught in Serena's opinion.

"Contented Crows!" echoed Amy's voice from atop the stairway, "Hurry Imp'lets!"

The heavy Gargoyle could be heard dragging itself across the stone floor.

"Ahhhh!" students come rushing down.

"Bang!" The impact traveled as noise and vibration down the tunnel, like an invisible rock rolling out of view.

"Wow", Serena said. She was glad for the instinctive penguin huddle now.

Amy and the remainder of the class finally appeared. They seemed to be arguing.

"Are we really just going to leave them behind?" Isa protested.

"Look, accidents happened. That ought to be a life lesson for you all, don't linger behind!"

"What happened?" Serena attempted to tap a shoulder but instead tapped someone's head.

The owner of the head slapped her hand, "Marietta and some other girls didn't make it past the gargoyle", the petit girl was only slightly taller than a house-elf, but her voice was deeper than most girls.

"Oh", she smiled awkwardly.

"Follow me", Amy passed the clustered students, "follow. Don't get lost. As you can see, we WILL leave you behind".

The tunnel felt like ages of cardio. Transforming from a tunnel into small circling stairs then back into vast damp passageways. Leading them deeper and deeper underground. Initially, everyone was very talkative, exited and or nervous about the first M.P.A experience. Serena had even won a few compliments for her earlier bravery. But now, the tired class had fallen silent. Perhaps wondering similar things. When would hey reach a destination? Where were they going? And how could they do anything when everyone was already dragging their feet? Would they be back in time for their next class?

"Code #15137", Amy had stopped abruptly, and since he refused to cast Lumos, everyone crashed right into him. "Watch it Imp'lets".

They were standing in front of a red-bricked wall. Sapphire light glowed from within Amy's wand and veiled the surrounding in blue. The students watched in amazement as that same light flowed, like water, from within the wand and into the wall; illuminating every indentation between the bricks in blue.

"Listen up Imp'lets. Do not speak to anyone. Only listen to my commands. Open your bags and take the robes from within. Quickly", he said sharply, "put them on", he grunted, "Oh, and for God's sake, fix those hairs". A few people still looked a mess from the pixie attack.

Nobody spoke. They all quickly followed instructions. The blue robes looked like hooded ponchos. Almost normal, like the kind Serena tended to see in cold seasons back in the Muggle world.

Amy turned around. The shadows in his face deepening his gestures, "I will not have one of you ruin this for me. Do I make myself clear?" He didn't wait for a response, turned back to the wall and tapped specific bricks with his wand. Like Magic, the wall spread open.

"Wow", the class gasped in awe.

The entrance revealed brown-bricked corridors with gadgets and wires chaotically lining the ceiling and walls. Sparks occasionally flashed and sprinkled down like old pipes dripping water.

"12 out of 15… those odd aren't bad…" Amy whispered, and the echo carried it down the tunnel. "O, shoot, ahh, this way!" he walked forward, "hoods on. Hoods on", he said with an odd break in his voice.

Amy led the group through the corridor of wires. The baffled students kept tripping over one another; the foreign Muggle electricity entranced a few while others became lost to the odd paintings and symbols. Soon they began to see people… some not so human. More like human-animal hybrids. The corridors had turned busy. A few doors lay wide open for the students to peek into.

"Wow", Serena heard Kai say, "look at that cauldron", he pointed at an open door. Inside, a black cauldron spit out large green bubbles. Something must have gone wrong because the white-robed wizards around it seemed to be fighting against it, throwing spells and odd bottles at the living ooze.

"Forget that", responded the tall athlete guy, "look at that", he pointed at another open door. Inside, a caged silver monkey played chess with a witch while others took notes.

"That's a Demiguise", Neville looked like a kid in a candy store, "a herbivore. They can tell the future, which makes them incredibly hard to catch".

"Wow", Serena graved her heart and smiled. Would she ever get used to her new life? She wondered.

"Hey", someone tapped Serena's shoulder.

"Ahhh!" she jumps 180 degrees.

She was greeted by Draco's intense grey eyes.

Her eyes widen, "…um, we shouldn't fall behind-"

"No", he graved her arm, "walk and talk".

The two walked behind the rest. Everyone was still distracted by the surroundings.

Serena exhaled. It appeared there was no way out. So she waited. And waited… and waited. Serena narrowed her eyes. Draco was stalling. "You don't even know what to say do you?"

"What you heard… If I find, you told someone. Believe me, I will destroy-"

She pulled her arm, "yeah, yeah, I know the drill. You're going to make my life a living hell. But see here, I know your type. You're a rich kid who thinks the world revolves around you. News flash, I got my own problems!"

"Shhh!" He pulled her arm again and looked around.

"What I'm trying to say is, I'm not going to say anything, okay. It's not like you talked about anything important anyways. Just a dumb fight with your dad right?"

Draco huffs. What would you know. Hart, I've never heard that last name. Bet you're a Mudblood. You wouldn't comprehend the import matters of a pureblood family!" He half-whispered.

"Blood what?"

"Uuuu" followed by a few whistles. Their classmates had finally taken notice of them.

Draco pushed Serena, causing the girl to nearly fall.

"Quiet!" interrupted Amy. "Listen up Imp'lets. We're here", he pointed at a door with M.P.A engraved at the top. The doors looked made out of stone with two gargoyle-like creatures engraved at each door. They blocked the entrance with spears that crossed in an x. "Remember, don't make me look stupid. And don't speak one word. Hoods up, heads down…. and if you can…. Stand on your tiptoes".

The students looked to one another with puzzled expressions.

Amy once more did enchantments that brought the gargoyles to life. The doors opened and revealed a vast laboratory room that was broken down into glass chambers. Each chamber compromised of a team of uniformed sorcerers working on different projects. "There", Amy pointed straight ahead, "all the way to the back…. That's our door".

There was no door exactly. Way to the back was a chamber, were pillars and arches framed two floating black holes. Each pulsing different deep colors.

"Stargate…", whispered Serena. A grin registered across her face.

"Students, you may not see clearly from here, but these are the Great Twin Portals of Hogwarts. You cannot comprehend the honor it is to witness such rare and glorious sight".

"Professor, why can't we just use authorized portkeys? I would imagine that to be easy-", Draco is cut off by Amy.

"Don't interrupt, as I was saying… the first time I saw one… It was the only time in my life I cried", he said in such a gentle way that if Serena were not distracted, she would have been shocked.

"Professor?" A silver robed sorceress surprised the group, "paperwork please", she tossed her long brown hair back and took out a round tablet.

Amy scrambled through his bag. "Inspector, yes, of course…Oh… o no. I think I might be missing some…..", he handed a few papers to the sorceress.

"Squad aid!?…" Her narrowed eyes widened as they moved down the papers, "your traveling?..."

"Barrock!" Amy waved down an old sorcerer standing not too far away.

The man narrowed his eyes and held his glasses away from his face, "is-is-is that my friend", he struggled to say. The man was so old that it looked like he was struggling to make any movement.

Amy ran to him, leaving the kids with the inspector.

The inspector looked down at the students, she lowered her glasses and examined each one. "How old are you?"

Serena looked at her peers. They did the same. Amy's instructions were so confusing.

The inspector crossed her arms.

"We're 17", Zephir stepped up.

The inspector pulled down Zephir's hood, "oh, really".

"That's right", Neytiri stepped forward.

"Huh?" Serena heard Malfoy say.

"What are these two going on about?" whispered Isa.

Serena was equally confused. Why were Zephir and Neytiri lying?

The inspector was questioning them when Amy, followed by Barrock, finally arrived.

"They're with m-m-, me", the old man spit his words.

The inspector wiped her glasses with a sleeve. "Dr. Barrock... they don't even look-"

"Quiet child. Listen to your superiors", barked Amy with a grin that obviously rattled the inspector.

Barrack fixed his glasses, "ma-magic works in srt-strange ways Miss Helena. If- I- I were you, I'd just go with the flow", he said shakily.

The inspector huffed. She returned the pages to Amy, almost shoving them into his hands, "may I ask where these children are heading?"

"Those questions will be handled by your superior", smiled Amy.

"I've got it from here Helena. Go-go take your break child", Barrack gently tapped the inspector's shoulder.

The inspector bit her lip. Analyzed the students once more, then, without saying a word, bowed her head and left.

Amy and the old man huddled away from the students.

"Does anyone ells feel like something's off?" Serena half-whispered.

"You just transferred right", asked the sweaty Neville. "Here at Hogwarts, our professors are a little strange… but it always works out?" He smiled a little too wide.

"Likely missing a screw or two", whispered Draco.

"No. It's not a coincidence", Luna corrected, "everything works out because they are geniuses who instinctively work around the infinite possibilities normal men cannot predict".

"Hurry students!", Amy interrupted.

Dr. Barrock led them down the corridor of chambers. The amazed students once more bumped into one another as they witnessed sorceress, and older students, judging by their age, undertaking strange experiments. They were so excited that Amy had to frequently tell them to be quiet.

"Look!" Serena tugged at a random arm, "those guys look so cool with their birds. Are they eagles?"

"Mmmm… Judging by their bright yellow eyes I would say familiars", responded a silvery voice and owner of the arm. It was Luna.

"What's a familiar?" Serena quickly regretted her question. Was that common knowledge?

"They're nothing like the animals required for school... well slightly similar. My father has one. They're entities that take the form of an animal. If they accept a witch as their master, they vow to assist that witch in any form they can", her gentle voice was oddly deeper than before.

"I want one", Serena said with a large grin.

"I believe a life long contract would have to be made…. I don't remember well, but there are certainly some negative implications to it… I guess it's up to the wizard if they think the rewards are justifiable…", she said so low that Serena barely heard.

"We're here!" Barked Amy. He looked excited. "Single file".

Everyone entered the chamber and immediately clustered together. No one said anything.

Serena had become entranced by the palpitating portal. The more she looked into the deep hue mass, the stronger became the sensation it would swallow them in. The brunet graved on to Luna and Hannah.

The portal caretakers were all wearing goggles and gloves. They moved chaotically around strange machines, the largest peculiarly similar to a grandfather clock.

"Coordinates 5. 9. 2.6. 89…", counted a worker in a monotone manner.

In the ceiling, there was a projection of solar systems. It began to zoom in to a star, then to a galaxy, then to a planet.

"Analyzing temperature. 9 degrees Celsius!" Called a worker. The floor's painted carton moon and stars rotated to reveal a happy sun. " 6 am", she shouted.

"Danger level coming in as 200 Micivels. Recommended training level, senior four-star combatants".

Amy and Dr. Barrock looked to one another.

"You su-sure about tha, this", the old man's voice seemed to shake more than before, "Think this ma-might be more than we tho-thought".

Amy turned to the portal. He gently struck his chest with a balled fist, "All for the glory of Hogwarts", he said with glistening eyes. "Imp'lets, single file"

Serena felt a stream of nerves hit her. Everyone ells must have grown nervous too because they grasped on to one another. It took Amy a few tries before he got them to break free and line up.

This part happened a lot faster than going into the underground tunnels. Amy went in first. The class lined up as instructed and moved into the portal holding hands, not instructed. Nobody acknowledged it, not even Draco. At the front line were Zephir and Neytiri. At the back was Serena followed by Hannah and finally Isa.

"Stop them!" Yelled inspector Helena. She came running into sight with a group of professors, which included Gregor. Serena was stunned in place. The group plowed through workers and pointed their wands towards them.

"Petrificus Totalus!" shouted a professor.

Serena felt Hanna release her grasp as she fell flat on the floor.

Isa dropped to the floor and covered her head.

"Ha-hurry!" yelled Dr. Barrock and pushed Serena into the swirling portal.

"AHHH!" Serena was consumed by the gas like mass. The image before her dissipated. Her weight dissipated…. Did she still exist? "Professor?…", suddenly, as if riding a roller-coaster, she was pulled through a stream of stars and planets. "MOM!"

To be continued…

**Thank you so much for reading!**


	5. Blessed Curse

**Disclaimer: This story takes place and is inspired by J.K Rowling's work. A few concepts and characters are my own.**

* * *

**Two weeks before school starts**

Old bristles combed through uneven gold locks.

"Ouch", the little girl instinctively pulls back.

"Sorry Lizy", the young Nun looked at the comb. The crooked plastic bristles had lost their caps, leaving behind bare sharp plastic ends. The Nun exhales, "we must invest in a new comb".

"Sister Heather", the little girl's voice is raspy, "will you be able to fix it?" tears threaten to surface, "I just wanted a cute look…."

The Nun looked deeply at the uneven short hair. The blunt cuts in the little girl's bangs don't leave much room for fixing. "Lizy… dear… I'm afraid we might have to cut it all off. So that it may grow back even-"

"I'm going to look like a boy!" the little girl's cries are so loud that all the girls in the old courtyard abandon what they're doing and gather around.

The Nun pulled the blond into a hug, "O Dear, It's all right Lizy. Hair grows. Plus, It doesn't look too bad".

"You can hardly tell". Encouraged the group of different-aged girls "so intriguing!", "you look great!"

"How did this happen in the first place?" Sister Heather pats the blond head.

"Miss Heather", a taller redhead girl carrying scissors steps out from the group. Her eyes are puffy and cannot look at the Nun. "It was my fault. We were playing hairstylist and, I… I really did think it would work!" she drops the scissors and bursts into tears.

"O dear", the nun pulled the guilty girl into the group hug, "there, there", she strokes the distraught girl's heads. "Listen, I'm going to tell you a very important lesson".

The group sat on the grey pavement. Their legs crossed and faces framed with smiles.

"Appearances do not reflect a person's heart. They don't tell others how we feel. They don't inform us if a person is good or bad", she looked down at all the girls. Each one as imperfect as the next, missing teeth, shrunk or oversized uniforms, and wild long hair. "Our appearances can be fun, but they are simply there to come and go".

"Sister!"

The startled group runs to hide behind the young Nun.

"Sis-Sister Cornelia", the young Nun looks up at the veiled wrinkled face. "I didn't see you coming…"

"I was quietly watching your lesson…. I was stunned at what I was hearing. Our sacred ways being corrupted!".

"What!", the young Nun takes hold of the cross around her neck, "No, I would never-"

"Appearances do matter!" Barked Cornelia. "They reflect our devotion to God. Long hair for women, short for men. It's in the bible!", her voice echoed across the halls. "These girl's appearance reflects our school's integrity!" Her red face suddenly turned deeper shades, "What would other convents say about our orphanage?!"

"Sister-"

Cornelia ignores Heather and pulls the guilty redhead from the crowd. "Vanity is a sin". She takes the scissors from the floor and grasped the long red locks. The crowd gasps, "let this be a lesson to you all", she holds tightly to the squirming redhead, "Anyone attempting to change our sacred customs will face the consequences-"

"BANG!" The ground shakes.

"Ahhhh!" the girls run to Sister Heather.

"Earthquake?", "What was that noise?"

"Bang, Bang!", the noise is coming from the chapel across the courtyard. The women watch in terror as the large old bell falls from the tower and rolls right into the parking lot. The car alarms run wild, like animals shrieking in pain.

"Look!", a girl pointed at the chapel's window.

Through the stained glass, shadows of large human silhouettes approached the doors.

"Nobody should be in there….", Heather looked to Cornelia for guidance, but the old nun was stunned in place, "gir-girls, we need to pray-"

"Bang!" The front doors burst open. To the Horror of the women, out came the hopping statues of various saints and angels.

"Lord…", Cornelia drops to her knees. The rest follow her example.

"The statues surround the group of women.

Cornelia raises her hands to the statue of crucified Jesus, "MY LORD! THIS IS A MIRACLE!"

"Silence", roared a deep voice from the statue.

The women, including Cornelia, lower their heads.

"You MUG-", pause, "sinners have angered the Gods!"

"My-my Lord?-"

"Silence! Only I speak. You have not followed my sacred rules! What have you to say?" The cowering women stay silent. "Speak old lady!"

"My-my Lord, what do you mean?", Cornelia said while covering her head.

"We don't want flowers!", roared the statue and the other statues mumbled their agreements. "We want to be made out of DIAMOND!

"Yeah!" The jumping statues shook the ground.

"AND!" A shepherd statue calmed the statue clutch, "and, have real Sheep!"

"Yes!" the statues go wild again.

"And!" a baby angel statue with a deep voice spoke, "entertainers! You know how boring it is to do nothing all day?"

"Boring, boring!" roared the statue crowd.

The speechless females looked to the saints with jaws dropped.

"Obliviate!" a silver-like mantle flowed through the air and covered the kneeling females. Their expressions softened as they entered a trance-like state.

Cloaked men and women emerged from what seemed nowhere. They enclosed the scene and like cops they took on several jobs. Cleaning the sight, restoring the chapel, inspecting the women, inspecting the now lifeless statues, and-

"Cornelius! I mean, Minister Fudge, We found the culprits!" three witches emerged with four boys apprehended.

The short man, with grey hair and a flashy green hat, clapped at the sight before him, "well done, well done", he turned to the four elegant wizards standing next to him, "I told you there was no mistake. Draco Malfoy, Theodore Nott, Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle. I'm sure there are more crimes than underage magic taking place here. Wouldn't you agree?"

The men did not acknowledge Cornelius. They simply looked at the boys with dagger eyes as they were brought closer.

"Father", Draco could not look at his father's eyes.

"Don't say a word", Barked the man with long silver hair, "Cornelius, I'm sure this can all be dealt with privately", he turned to the man with a sharp stare.

"Lucius-"

"Yes", interrupted one of the fathers, "Goyle, obviously has an explanation for this. I mean, Cornelius, just look at this place, it's demented", he said in a high pitch.

The old Minister was about to speak when the men agreed for him, "Yes", "strange", understandable".

"In all my years I've only heard terrible things about this religion", said the eldest of the men who used a cane to support himself.

Cornelius took his green hat off and flustered his hair. "Look, I-" But before the man could finish his sentence, chaos erupted from the sidelines.

"This is public space. I see no restriction lines… or are you trying to cover something up?", the woman with short, blond, curly hair leaned in. Her flying quill and pen mimicked her movement, "perhaps you're protecting someone? I won't disclose my sources", she winked at the wizard trying to keep her from moving forward.

"Rita Sketter!" Cornelius and the men approached the woman.

"Cornelius, my friend", she said innocently.

"How on earth did you hear about this- ahh!", Cornelius is blinded by a photographer.

"Do not publish that!" Barked one of the men as the flashes continued.

"A little birdie told me. There is no point on trying to hide the obvious", she looked past the men to the four boys still apprehended.

Before the angry men could answer, more journalists started apparating not far away.

"That two-timing birdie!" Barked Rita.

"Cornelius", Luscious turned to the minister, "we must take this matter elsewhere. NOW!"

For Draco, time seemed to become distorted. He recalled walking through the busy corridors of the Ministry of Magic, a place he had often visited with his father. Everyone seemed to be staring. The secretary's typing slowed as they walked passed her. Next thing he knew, they were in the elevator, the normal loud din chatter gone. Replaced by whispers. How quick had the news spread? He wondered. Soon, like magic, he was sitting in the courtroom. His friends at his side shaking like the little girls at the orphanage. They had been seated at the center of the circular structure, with fathers standing behind them. Various witches and wizards debated around them. Even Dumbledore was there. Draco couldn't think properly, he could hear his father speaking, more like shouting, in his defense, but whether his father was succeeding was hard to tell.

"Silence!" Cornelius used his wand to amplify his voice, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have heard enough. The council will now vote. I restate the offenses. On August 18, 1994, the defendants Gregory Goyle, Theodore Nott, Vincent Crabbe, and Draco Malfoy are accused of 'Underage magic' and 'Assault on Muggle Religion', all in the presence of 17 Muggles", the fathers of the guilty boys protested but Cornelius continued, "all committed on the sacred grounds of Muggle territory, a catholic church. Those in favor of conviction by permanent expulsion from Hogwarts please vote now", almost half of the room's hands rise.

Draco's heart sank; never seeing Hogwarts again was surprisingly upsetting.

"Those in favor of conviction by, three months suspension from Hogwarts, and fathers serve one month in Azkaban, please-"

"What!?...", Draco looked around, the words sinking in. He ignores the minister's attempt to bring order to the court. "Azkaban!" He jumped to his feet. "That's-"

"Draco!", Luscious forces him back into the seat.

"But father, you've done nothing wrong! It was just a prank that got out of control!" he shouted to the council, "Obliviate can quickly solve that!"

Cornelius fixed his voice, "young man-"

"These children are the result of the supremacist beliefs flaunted by the sacred 28!" shouted someone from the crowd.

"My family are also purebloods", shouted a stubby woman dressed almost entirely in pink, "there's nothing wrong with celebrating one's legacy!"

"What would the Wizarding community think if yet again another pureblood is exonerated for their crimes?!"

"And not just any pureblood! But the son of the Minister's close friend!"

"What!" Cornelius turned to the crowd, "How dare-"

"The Prophet will accuse us of corruption!"

"The Ministry cannot possibly fear the Prophet!".

Draco wanted to protest. But his father held him down.

"Draco, listen to me", his father said while the divided council debated, "you do not realize you are ruining everything for me", he dug his fingers into Draco's shoulders.

Draco, who always had something to say, suddenly found himself at a loss of words.

"If I may have your attention!" Dumbledore spoke and the room calmed, "I don't mean to interrupt the conversation, but it seems to me there is an even divide in the room. Please hear my suggestion, seeing that it is Hogwarts that centers around the punishment".

With the room in order, Cornelius finally spoke, "ah, yes, what have you to suggest Albus?"

"I believe there was a crime and therefore need for punishment, but one more appropriate. We cannot be sure there was a crime of hate against Muggles", a few protests rose, but the headmaster calmly continued, "to appease the Wizarding community, we should exemplify these children by subjecting them to a form of community service".

The crowd whispered behind Cornelius, "what exactly do you mean by community service?"

"Let these pureblood children demonstrate that there is no ill will against Muggles, by taking Muggle classes at Hogwarts", the whispers amplified.

"What?" Draco could hear his friends and their fathers asking one another.

"I, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, take full responsibility for these children's rehabilitation. Under the guidance of Hogwarts, they will build a more respectful perspective of Muggles". He said calmly with one hand in the air.

The council was speechless. Lost in thought perhaps.

Draco looked up to his father. The man was looking straight at Dumbledore with an expression Draco recognized as hatred.

"Well….", Cornelius looked to his peers, "those in favor of Muggle studies as a punishment, please vote now", a few hands fly in the air.

The room is silent. More hands rise. Little by little, the majority of the council has voted. Cornelius fixes his voice "I, Cornelius Oswald Fudge, sentence the accused, Gregory Goyle, Theodore Nott, Vincent Crabbe, and Draco Malfoy to", he looked around the room, "an indeterminate sentence of Muggle studies at Hogwarts. We will arrange evaluations later to determine the length of this sentence… seeing how spontaneous and quick everything has been", he looked to his peers who were all finally in agreement.

Draco felt himself melt in the chair. He wasn't quite sure how to feel about everything. All he knew was that he needed to lie down, "Vec, I'm going to kill you for this…" he whispered.

"Draco",

"Father?", Draco looked up. The pale Man's eyes looked hazy, lost was the word that came to Draco's mind. "I… I'm really sorry-"

"Perhaps this is a blessing in disguise…"

"Blessing?"

"Have you ever heard of M.P.A studies? It's a subject that involves Muggle protection from dark magical threats".

"Yes father, I know what it is".

"Good. We might have just found the solution to a problem… The boy who lived might finally meet his end", he whispered.

Draco stood up, did he hear right?

The poised man finally looked at his son, "It will be you Draco, the one that finally takes down Harry potter", his voice barely audible. "And", he looked behind Draco, "I'll finally see Dumbledore fail".

Draco wanted to press his father for answers, but a swarm of witches and wizards rushed the pureblood fathers and separated them from their sons. It seemed he would have to wait to speak with the man alone.

A week after his court hearing, the 1994 World Quidditch Cup was attacked by death eaters. It was rumored a few Muggles died. Lies. The Wizarding world got even more chaotic and divisive. At least his face wasn't the Prophets favorite anymore. At home, everything was also turbulent, his father, Lucius, had always been strict, but as of lately he had become aggressive and mysterious. It was best not to aggravate him with questions or complains. A week later, school started, Goyle and Crabbe were placed in Muggle studies while He and Theodore were placed in M.P.A studies. Four purebloods, taking Muggle studies, they would be the joke of Hogwarts no doubt. This year was bound to be terrible. And it seemed he was right. On his first day of school, the mad Astronomy substitute professor decided to take them across a portal.

**To be continued…**

**As always, thank you so much for reading. And heads up, the next few chapters will be told through the perspective of Draco. **


	6. Surviving Opposing Forces

**Disclaimer: This story takes place and is inspired by J.K Rowling's work. A few concepts and characters are my own.**

* * *

The way Draco saw it, pranking the convent had resulted in him and his friends becoming sacrificial lambs for a political cause. A week after his court hearing, the 1994 World Quidditch Cup was attacked by Death Eaters. It was rumored a few Muggles died. Lies. A week later, He and Theodore were placed in M.P.A studies, a subject that involved Muggle protection from dark magical threats. This year was bound to be terrible. And it seemed he was right. On his first day of school, the mad Astronomy substitute professor decided to take them across a portal.

Darkness and cold greeted Draco as he landed. Not knowing what to expect, he drew his cloak tighter and waited for his eyes to adjust to moonlight. Not far he could hear a similar sound to wizards apparating. But something was wrong. Their movements seemed strange. There was a lot of shuffling and quick pacing, all followed by nervous mumbling.

"Ahhh!" A female's panicked voice, followed by the sensation of the floor vibrating.

Draco took a few steps back. A mistake. "Ahhh!" his foot gave way and he plummeted down a hillside. The sound of branches and clothes ripping stopped as Draco landed on his side.

"Neytiri!", "Amy!", "Over here!" Draco heard his classmates frantically calling for one another at a distance.

"Hey! I'm over here!" The silver hair teen attempted to reach for his wand, "Oww!" pain struck his side.

"Ahh!" A female's panicked cry came from atop the hill, "Run!" the hurried steps rustled leaves on their way.

Then, came the sound of growling followed by massive steps shaking the ground.

The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. He fought through pain and reached for his wand, "Lumos!"Almost concealed by fog, was the sight of primitive architectural remains within a thick forest. The boy got to his feet and cautiously walked through the fog. His breath came out in clouds that mixed with the heavy mist. He could still faintly hear people running and yelling. However, it was unclear what direction they came from.

"Hey!" his voice came out raspy, "Amy!" Even the cold air was painful in his lungs. What the heck was happening, he wondered. Draco felt anger rising. They left him. He, one of the most important- no, the most important wizard in the lot. His father would surely hear about this. That mad professor would be fired no doubt. "Oww! He stepped on mud, the harsh movement sent pain to his ribs. The boy tried to free himself from the muddy grasp. Another mistake. He was sent to the ground. Now he was covered in mud. The boy huffed in frustration. Wait! Where was his wand? He could see faint light under the mud layer. Draco began searching for his wand frantically. He had just lost an extension of himself.

The sound of growling returned.

The boy froze. He swiftly turned and searched for the animal. A wolf? A bear? Either one was a danger to a wandless wizard.

Stalking steps accompanied the growling. They where at his left one moment then, all of a sudden, they were behind him.

"Shit, shit". Suddenly, the boy felt the firm familiar wooden wand. "There!" he pulled the mud-covered object. "What?...", he looked into the snake-like eye slits of a Death Eater mask. The boy hurled the mask into the darkness, like if he had accidentally picked up a spider.

The stalking steps around him suddenly changed. The animal was running to him.

"Stay back!" the pureblood rapidly pierced the mud and took his weapon, "Alarte Ascendare!"

He stood there waiting. The only sound was his pulsing heart. "Lumos…" nothing stood before him, or around him. Was fear playing tricks on him? He wondered.

"Depulso!" A male voice yelled not far.

Draco stopped his movements and looked around.

"Depulso!" The voice sounded so familiar.

Draco put all his strength to free himself and set out to find the person.

"You don't scare me!" The voice said full of confidence.

Draco abruptly halted. That voice… It was Potter! It had to be.

The voice got closer. The silhouette of a person was running across the ruins. Something was chasing after him. "Ahhh!" the figure took a tumble.

Draco ran to Harry. From the safety of a cliff, he could see his rival on the floor. The bear size creature, hidden by the fog and darkness, cautiously approached his victim. But Harry wasn't getting up.

_"__The boy who lived will finally meet his end"_, Echoed his father's voice in his head. Draco looked away. He felt his whole body become numb and shake uncontrollably. "Potter!" He turned to the impending kill, "Confringo!"

The monster erupted in flames. Its screeches echoed across the forest as it contorted itself on the ground.

Draco dropped to the floor and covered his ears in pain. The volume ten times louder than a Dementor's cry. He suddenly heard the creature dash away. Draco looked up. The fireball was running away, catching debris and foliage on fire on its away. Its excruciating cries slowly died at a distance. The boy couldn't turn away for fear the danger would return.

"Draco…" called a shaking voice.

Draco turned to the floor expecting Harry.

Serena Hart was looking at him. Her hazel eyes still full of fear, "thanks", she managed to say before collapsing on the floor again.

Draco sat there, in silent darkness, wondering if he imagined it all.

The two wizards moved through the remains in a daze. Everything had gone quiet now. With dawn fast approaching, the surrounding became more vivid. Everything looked dead. The endless branches and grey foliage twisted wrathfully in all directions. Like if they meant to devour the last pillars loosely standing in place. The two walked in silence in hopes of finding the rest or being rescued.

Draco felt removed from his body. Not even the intense cold fazed him in the slightest.

"Draco?" called the girl.

"What is it?"

"Are you alright?"

He turned away, oddly feeling as though she was being intrusive, "as fine as anyone could be in this situation", his tone full of cynicism.

"Geese, I was just trying to be nice. You look really pale. But I'll keep out of your business if that's what you want".

"Fine".

"Fine".

Two minutes later.

"Draco"

"What"

"Do you think there's any more monsters out there?"

"I don't know. But if you keep talking so loud, I'm sure you'll get their attention".

She huffed and turned away.

Two minutes later.

"Draco"

He rolled his eyes "What?"

"Isn't there anything you could do to call for help? Like a pager or flare-gun or something?"

Draco tried to focus his hazy mind. Nothing. "What in the world is a pager, they Muggle inventions?"

"Yes. You want me to describe them?"

"No", he said with disgust. How could the girl even think of suggesting Muggle aid. But it was this talk that reminded him of a solution. A shameful one. He huffed, "the Knight Bus".

"What?"

He ignored her and raised his wand. If he recalled correctly, a stranded witch or wizard would be aided by simply raising their wand.

"What are you doing?"

"Shhh, just wait".

And they waited. And waited… and waited.

The girl crossed her arms.

"It's not working", he lowered his wand, "what am I missing?..."

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" Serena looked upset.

"Isn't it obvious! I'm calling the Knight Bus". The words made a knot in his stomach.

"A bus? Why on earth would there be a bus in the forest".

Draco huffed, "Don't they have Knight Buses in America?"

Serena turned away, "Oh yeah… forgot about that. Remind me."

Draco crumbled his mouth to one side. Truth was, his family tended to ridicule the Knight Bus. It was a system adopted from Muggles. A true Wizard would never care or dare call upon such thing. "You can't expect a pureblood to have looked into such a ridiculous system".

The girl looked around, "well, it may surprise you, but there is plenty of half witches that don't support such…system".

"What? Great, what good are you then".

"Hey! You don't know anything either. We're both looking bad here".

"I have no need to learn about Muggle operated-"

"You look in NEED now!"

Draco looked at the girl with dagger eyes, "Such insolence, such inferiority, how could such a girl exist!"

The girl looked to him with an equally repulsed expression, "If you're done trying to insult me and attract more monsters, can you please think of a solution to get us out of here". She tapped her foot, "that's the only way you'll get rid of me".

Draco turned away. He refused to look at her, "yes, you're right. The faster we get out of here, the faster I can stop looking at such an ugly face", he turned to her. What greeted the boy looked something familiar to a lioness about to kill.

She walked to his face, "we're looking for a bus right?"

"Yes…", he said a little scared. A flash of Hermione punching him in the face crossed his mind.

"Well, then maybe we should be looking for a street. As far as I know, buses drive on streets! Not Forests!"

There weren't many options. Perhaps the girl was right. Draco hoped she was right. After a few minutes of walking, the boy tried to push away thoughts of desolate Amazon size forests. This couldn't possibly be the way he died. The image of Hogwarts amidst a funeral popped in head. Slytherin mourning while Gryffindor celebrated.

"There!" Serena had spotted the path first.

Finding a paved road was like finding an oasis in the desert. It was an old road heavily damaged by time and nature. Even his pain seemed to vanish for a while. But, the successful moment didn't last. It was after a half-hour of walking that Draco began to wonder if the Knight bus worked outside of London. He slowly brought his wand down.

The girl gave him a half-smile, "Maybe we're supposed to find a bus stop. I mean, if the Knight Bus is anything like a Muggle bus, then that's the only way to board it… if not…. Well, all roads lead somewhere right?" She said with a frown, "don't argue with me on this one, right now we could use any form of help".

Draco nodded yes. But he hoped it wouldn't be a Muggle who saved them. That would certainly shame his family.

The two didn't say much after that. They kept walking until the fog revealed a cemetery.

Serena looked to Draco with wide eyes as she hugged her arms, "Scary".

"Do you smell that?" Draco caught a sweet sent.

"Food!" Serena ran to the cemetery, "we're saved!" The smell was coming from inside a small house at the edge of the property.

"Idiot! We don't know if it's safe…" he told the wind. But then again, what choice did two starving wizards have. The boy dragged himself across the cemetery. His energy nowhere near Serena's.

The small shack was decrepit inside and out.

Under normal circumstances, Draco would have never step one foot inside such a dirty Muggle place, but hunger and desperation truncated judgment. The first thing he saw as he entered was the girl drinking straight from the sink. "What are you doing!?" he covered his mouth.

"It's okay, the place's empty. Boy, I'm dry to the bone", she wiped her mouth, "you want a turn?" she made space for him.

"You're disgusting", he barked.

She scowled, "forgot you're a rich boy. She left to dig through drawers. "By the way, fridge's empty too, your highness"

Draco could not look away from the sink. His mouth was watering. He had never felt so much thirst before. "What did you say?"

"Catch!" she tossed him a cup.

The boy nearly dropped it. He rushed the sink and lost all grace. He could hear the girl laughing as he chugged down the water. It was so refreshing.

"Mud Prince"

He turned to the girl with mouth full of water.

"Famished?" she was holding a basket of bread.

She didn't have to ask. The two sat on the tiny table and lost all manners. Breadcrumbs flew in all directions.

"Hey, Draco?"

"Yeah?" the boy took a sip of water to help pass the massive chunks of breath he was attempting to swallow.

"Um… did you see anything strange in that forest? I mean besides the monster".

"No", he said a little too quickly.

"Oh…That forest… it was really… eerie, huh", her energy from earlier completely gone.

"Don't think about it", Draco had been telling himself the same thing.

"I really don't want to, but it's hard. Oh!" She tapped the table, "forgot to tell you, I bumped into this older guy in the woods. A wizard fighting off some monsters… he refused to help…something about me ruining his chances at winning a competition…"

Draco narrowed his eyes.

The girl didn't seem to notice his expression. "At first, he didn't think I was real. Even accused me of trying to botch his chances at surviving. He was really irrational… I tried following him, but, it was like he vanished into thin air… is that possible?"

The boy turned to the window. The silhouette of tombs could be seen through the fog. Somehow he doubted the girl had truly seen anything. That forest, something was obviously wrong with the place. Was that really where Amy intended to take them? Whatever the case, the mad professor would be fired for this. He, Draco Malfoy, would make sure of this.

"Look at me!" barked the girl.

The surprised boy turned to the girl.

"Sorry… It's just that… remembering the forest...well, I never expected Hogwarts would be this difficult…"

"It's not supposed to be. Something fishy is going on here". But on second thought, Draco had witnessed quite an amount of disasters ever since he started school. Basilisks, Dementors, and violent fugitives surely crowned Hogwarts as one, if not the most, dangerous wizarding school.

"Ahhhh!" Serena jumped off her seat.

Draco turned to see a sight that would scar him for life. A stampede of roaches emerged from the basket of bread they had been devouring seconds ago. He felt all air leave his lungs. His stomach started convulsing but he could not look away.

The girl graved his arm and pulled him outside. Both threw themselves on the floor and tried to catch their breaths.

But the image would now leave. Draco jumped to his feet and ran to a stone grave. His vomit showered over dried flowers.

"I'm sure", she inhaled, "I'm sure you just committed" she exhaled, "some sort of sacrilegious act", Serena started laughing through coughs.

Draco supported himself on the old grave and tried to breathe. It didn't matter who, but someone would have to pay for all of this.

"Here", Serena handed him a hand towel.

The boy took it, but not without giving her a murderous look.

"Don't even try to blame this on me".

"Let's just get out of here. God. Disgusting Muggles" he stumbled away.

The two walked yet again down the paved road. The howling wind and rustling leaves played in the background. No sign of life could be heard. The two were at a loss of words, their traumatized minds replying the incident no doubt.

Draco had to fight the urge to vomit every second.

"Hey", called the girl.

"What?" his voice came out raspy. It had to be from acid damage.

"Can we talk about something? I really need to focus on something".

"Sure", he coughed.

"If we could just get ahold of a payphone, we can call… I don't know, a taxi or something. We'll come up with a whole story and get back to London and-… Hopefully, the rest of the class finds their way home too…" she frowned, "hope they're all right", she shook her head, "Let's talk about something more positive. I know! Something I've been meaning to ask…" she bit the bottom of her lip.

"What?", Draco narrowed his eyes, expecting a dumb question to follow.

Whose Rahdrick?"

He blinked, "you mean Detective Rahdrick Gaunt?"

"Detective? You mean like an MPA detective?"

"Yes…"

"Tell me more"

"Why"

"Well, why not?"

Draco huffed, "The Gaunts, they're part of the sacred 28. Like my family."

"What are the sacred 28?"

"You really are foreign", he laughed at her expense as she pouted. It hurt to laugh, but it was also reliving. "They are ancient pureblood wizarding families. Revered and envied by everyone", he said with head raised high.

"Wow"

Pride tugged at the corner of his lips.

"Tell me more about the Gaunts", she said with wide eyes and smile.

Draco rolled his eye, " yes the Gaunts have the honor of being descendants from Salazar Slytherin, but their wealth isn't what it used to be. My family on the other hand-"

"Wow!" interrupted the girl, "so Vec's family are like Slytherin royalty", her eyes seemed to sparkle.

Draco huffed. "All Slytherins are remarkable. Wait, you know Vec?"

Her demeanor shifted, "yeah… from school", she said nervously.

What was this girl hiding, he wondered. "Wait", he stopped, "you're just trying to investigate my conversation with my father. Aren't you?!"

"What?!" She stopped.

"You heard my father mention Rahdrick this morning! I knew it, you Gryffindors are all so… Oww" his pain returned with intensity.

"I have no idea what you're talking about! I told you I didn't care about your daddy issues!"

"Daddy issues! How dare you", he stomped, "my family is perfect! And- who are you! Huh?" he looked around feeling like he was losing his point. But his insults seemed to work.

The girl looked worried. She kept looking around, like if searching for an escape.

Draco smiled, feeling pleased with himself. I bet your family is a bunch of nobodies!"

This seemed to hit a nerve, "My family is perfect too! They're sweet and caring, and, and", her eyes began to water, "I wish they were here right now", she covered her face and began to cry uncontrollably.

Draco stood there, wide-eyed. He knew how to win against words, but tears were another matter. "That- that won't work on me!"

"I'm- I'm not crying on purpose! You selfish jerk! You don't care about anyone but yourself!"

"Well! Well- You're reckless! Demented!"

"What?!" She wiped her tears, "what does that have to do with anything!"

"What kind of witch sees wizards in the middle of nowhere! You imagined it all! - Ahh!" Draco lost balance.

"Hey!" Serena's furious expression vanished as she caught him, "What's wrong?!"

"I'm not… sure", he felt all strength leaving him.

"Dra-co", the brunet was struggling to keep him standing.

"Serena!" a voice called from the distance.

Draco wanted to look but his vision was starting to get murky.

"What happened?" It was Zephir.

"Zephir!" Serena sounded like she was on the verge of tears again, "I don't know. He was fine a minute ago".

"Sit", Draco had no time to process anything, Zephir and another set of hands graved him from Serena and brought him to the ground.

"If this is how the rest of our field trips are going to be, I'm quitting first thing we get back". That voice had to be Nevilles.

"He's bleeding", a silvery voice said as she pulled Draco's cloak up.

Draco wanted to protest, but everything was starting to get more difficult. He ignored the movement occurring around him and instead focused on the distance. It was hard to tell, whether the fog or his vision where the ones blurring the sunrays. The faint rays were peaking from between trees. He could faintly hear Luna speaking in the background.

"He said we were invading an MPA entrance exam"

Draco had heard of this before. But if that were true, then that would mean they weren't on a class field trip, but a dangerous Ministry exam to become MPA detectives. The boy couldn't keep his lids open any longer. He closed his eyes as a faint voice called his name.

* * *

**Hey guys. Hope you enjoyed. I'm going to be posting Tuesdays in the afternoon from now on. Hope you stick around. **


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